In Newbury Park, I have been a regular at the local Starbucks for the past several years. I go there religiously several times a day to get my iced coffee or passion iced tea refill. There was another regular, who was always standing outside on the curb drinking his coffee and waving hello to people as they came and went. When I first moved back to Newbury Park, I was curious about the guy who was the Starbucks greeter as he was there morning, noon and night. Finally, I asked him his name one day, while we exchanged our daily hello's. He told me his name was Henry and he asked me my name and we chatted briefly. Henry would often start waving to me as soon as he saw me pulling into the parking lot. He was equally as friendly to other faithful Starbucks regulars. Many might have been put off by Henry, perhaps judging him for his gruff exterior and two day shadow, but Henry was a gentle soul...smiling and waving as people passed by. I overheard him getting into political discussions occasionally and he was certainly passionate about his point of view. He was caring and kind and would hold the door open if you were entering behind him. Recently, I noticed that Henry wasn't there to greet me and flowers were sitting where Henry use to stand. Henry passed away last Saturday from a seizure, just shy of his 30th birthday. It turns out that Henry had a traumatic brain injury from a skateboard accident as a teenager. He had been permanently disabled, so Starbucks became his social outlet for the past ten years. I'm going to miss Henry. He eagerly greeted me every day, and he had a knack for making you feel like he was super glad to see you, even for a moment. He touched so many lives with his hello each day. Funny how something so simple can mean so much. We take for granted the simple things and don't even realize how significant the little things really are. Henry's father says that Henry felt he had a mission to make people feel cared about and that Henry even resisted going on vacation with the family sometimes, because it would mean he couldn't be at that Starbucks saying hello to people. Who knew that in an ordinary looking parking lot, outside of a Starbucks, stood an angel with a mission. How many angels are in our midst, those folks (young and old, male or female, whose only mission is to make sure those people they come in contact with feel cared about. Rest In Peace Henry. I'm sure you are now the Newbury Park Starbucks guardian angel, still waving hello to us from the other side.
(Henry Morgan: May 25, 1987-Jan 28, 2017)
